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Tuesday, 23 May 2017

THE JOAN AIKEN FUTURE CLASSICS PRIZE

£1000 UP FOR GRABS

A.M. Heath and Lizza Aiken, Joan’s daughter, are launching a competition to find a standout new voice in middle grade children’s fiction.

Joan Aiken was the prizewinning writer of over a hundred books for young readers and adults and is recognized as one of the classic authors of the twentieth century. Her best-known series was ‘The Wolves Chronicles’, of which the first book The Wolves of Willoughby Chase was awarded the Lewis Carroll prize. On its publication TIME magazine called it: ‘One genuine small masterpiece.’ Both that and Black Hearts in Battersea have been made into films. Joan’s books are internationally acclaimed and she received the Edgar Allan Poe Award in the United States as well as the Guardian Award for Fiction in the UK for The Whispering Mountain. Joan Aiken was decorated with an MBE for her services to children’s books.

Joan Aiken took her craft very seriously – this may be why her books have become classics. She wrote:

“Really good writing for children should come out with the force of Niagara… children’s books need to have everything that is in adult writing but squeezed into smaller compass. Furthermore, as children read their books over and over, a book needs to have something new to offer each time. Richness of language, symbolism, or character may be appreciated for the first time at later readings, while the excitement of the story will only disguise failings at the first.”

The Prize will be judged by Julia Churchill, children’s book agent at A.M. Heath, and Lizza Aiken, daughter of Joan Aiken and curator of her Estate.

Julia Churchill writes: If I think of my childhood reading, it’s the classic 8+ novels that filled so much of my imaginative landscape. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Charlotte’s Web, The Borrowers, Goodnight Mr Tom, The Witches.

We are looking for a standout junior novel. It could be contemporary or magical, it could have the makings of a series, or be one crystalline stand-alone. We know we’re setting the bar high. We hope to find a book that will be in print in fifty years, as Joan achieved with the Wolves series – and many other books.

Lizza Aiken writes: Joan Aiken, if asked to come up with a winning formula for a children’s book, would say it must have three important elements: movement – a really taut narrative to pull the reader away from other distractions, mystery – to increase a sense of wonder, and a marvellous ending that surprises and also satisfies. An example she gave of superb storytelling was Beatrix Potter’s The Tailor of Gloucester, where the character of the enigmatic villain – the cat Simpkin – lifts the story from being a simple tale into a dynamic small masterpiece.

The winner will receive £1,000 and a full set of ‘The Wolves Chronicles’.

All shortlisted writers will have the chance to meet with Julia Churchill to discuss their work.

Submission guidelines:

The Joan Aiken Future Classics Prize is open to un-agented children’s book writers resident in the UK or Ireland.

To get a good sense of the voice, concept and where the character is headed, we’d like to see the first 10,000 words PLUS a short description of the book (a few lines) AND a one page outline that shows the spine of the story. Please send this as a Word doc attachment to futureclassics@amheath.com

Entrants will receive an acknowledgement of receipt, but only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Submissions open on May 8th 2017 and will close on July 31st.

A shortlist of five will be announced on August 28th, and the winner will be announced on September 14th 2017.

A.M. Heath is running the prize in order to support new writing talent, and to find a debut star. We will offer representation if we find an author, or authors, whose writing we love.

Do follow @juliachurchill and @lizzaaiken on twitter for updates. And if you have any questions about submitting, or the prize generally, please send them to futureclassics@amheath.com

About Me

I am a writer, photographer and I play the odd game of golf. My current love is writing and I particularly like to write short stories. As you can see most of my posts are related to writing, competitions and tutorials. I have found that my writing has improved immensely over the past few years thanks to author Bernie McGill of 'The Butterfly Cabinet' fame. My hat is off to her. Most of my writing stuff can be found on http://www.seanocarolan.com or follow me on twitter.